Greenpeace defends protest at PM’s home as ‘proportionate response to a disastrous decision’

Mayors from cities around the globe have urged Sadiq Khan to stay strong in the face of harsh criticism of his clean air policies.

The Conservative party narrowly held the constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip in a recent byelection, with its victory attributed partly to opposition to the London mayor’s upcoming extension of the capital’s ultra-low emissions zone (Ulez). A culture war over the role of cars in cities has erupted which has included arch comments from Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, who suggested his party was doing something “very wrong”.

But other city leaders have told Khan to keep going, arguing that clean air is important for everyone, and saying that they, too, have had to overcome strong opposition to green policies.

Raymond Johansen, the mayor of Oslo, Norway, since 2015, has implemented some radical proposals. As the city tends to have worse air pollution in the winter, there are total diesel bans in place seasonally, and on days with bad pollution the toll for vehicles entering the city increases.

Like Khan, Johansen has faced criticism, including from a single-issue political party set up opposing the toll ring. But he said he had found ways to counter the attacks on his clean air policies. “In general, we try to reduce traffic and congestion and we have a toll ring for all vehicles entering the city. In a city like Oslo, air quality is worst in the winter and on the coldest days. We lower speed limits on main roads and impose a fee on using studded tyres during winter to reduce the production of particle matter.

“On days with very high air pollution the city can ban diesel private cars and diesel vans that have older technology than Euro IV. We can also increase the fees at the toll ring on days with high pollution.”

As part of the bargain with the population, the local government does its bit to keep the air clean: “We clean the roads more and we increase the cleaning on days when we expect high levels of particulate matter.” Johansen said he was also looking at making public transport free on days with high pollution.

Although the tolls have had some opposition, Johansen said criticism had been mitigated because the funding was ringfenced for public transport.

“The toll ring revenue in Oslo is almost entirely used for public transport infrastructure investments,” he explained. “In 2019, Oslo introduced more toll booths. This happened in several cities, and led to the birth of a new single-issue political party, the People’s Party Against Road Tolls. In the 2019 local elections, the party won three seats in the city parliament. In reality, most inhabitants experienced that their expenses were reduced, and in the polls for the upcoming elections in September, the party has very little support.”

As in London, opponents of charges for polluting vehicles have tried to claim that it hurts the poorest in society. However, this was not true, Johansen said. “Common criticism against the toll ring, for example, is that low-income families will be much more affected than wealthy families. What we see in Oslo, however, is that those with the lowest incomes are those that are the most frequent users of the extensive public transportation system that Oslo has, and this service is improved with the revenues from the toll ring.”

Johansen praised London’s Ulez scheme:

I see the establishment of the Ulez and its expansion as a sign of bold leadership from Mayor Khan, with the clear aim to protect the health of children and vulnerable citizens. If you really want to tackle poor air quality in a large city like London, you need to introduce measures that are substantial enough to make a real difference, even if it meets resistance from parts of the city. This serves as an inspiration to other cities.

You can read the rest of Helena’s piece here: